1971 Volvo 164

Adjusted the timing a little last night (it was reading 0tdc and I pulled it back to 10BTDC at 1000rpm idle) and added more ATF fluid to the carburetors. I had also apparently forgotten to reattach the vaccum advance and retard when I put the manifold and carburetors back on. Tweaked the timing a little after that again and it’s running like a dream with all the power it should have. I did notice that the passenger side headlight is out, so I’ll have to replace that or at the very least hit it with a multimeter to make sure it’s not an electrical problem. I suspect it’s the headlight though, I can’t even begin to imagine how old they are.

Took a photo of her this morning as I walked to work:

For a site that I update so rarely I’m impressed that I get so many spam comments! I just went through about 800 from last fall.

Well the Volvo is back on the road and the springtime air seems to be treating her well. I put the intake/exhaust manifold back on with a new gasket I got from Swedish Treasures out of NY. After a little burning in the gasket it runs great. The rear carburetor is still not performing like the front one and I think it may either need a replacement (I have 2 spares) or a rebuild. Still with only one carb it runs great and even my sportscar fanatic friend was surprised at the power it has now. Getting the u-joints done last year was a huge benefit.

It may need some exhaust work in the near future but for right now I’m going to drive the hell out of it in this nice spring weather. I spent all winter looking at other old Volvos and when I got back in the 164 I realized why I love this car so much. It’s comfortable, a bit unpredictable, and totally unique looking. I stopped to get some dinner the other night and a small child pointed to it and said “Mommy thats a cool car!” High praise indeed.

Wow it’s been a while since I posted! In the meantime I put the instrument panel back in with a new solid state voltage stabilizer but that didn’t seem to fix the gauge issue. Next step is checking the fuel sender.

I dropped the old girl off at C&R Auto in Charlottesville to have the universal joints replaced. It has always had a pretty strong vibration coming from the drivetrain at above 45mph or so. I put up with it on the highway when I had to but I’ve avoided driving at higher speeds with it due to this. It’s OK around town but pretty nervewracking on I-64. Hopefully I’ll be able to cruise in comfort (and safety!) on the highway when I get it back out of the shop.

I was also lucky enough to find a pair of chrome headlight surrounds on Ebay along with a “new” heater blower assembly. That isn’t so much an issue right now but last winter it really sucked not having heat. And those chrome headlight surrounds will really be classy – I sanded and primed the ones I had but I still like the look of the chrome a whole lot more than the painted ones. I’ll put up some pictures when I get her out of the shop.